Rainy Day | Rhea Ripley

Chapter 9

So soft, so gentle this rose is kind and still

with change comes hatred now time to kill

- Malevolence by New Years Day

It took me a while to remember where I was when I woke up the next morning.Everything slowly came back to me when I felt a hand on my back and heard Demi humming behind me."Good morning" I turned around to her."Jesus Christ you look like hell" was her response.

I got up and went to the bathroom to splash cold water on my face when I caught my reflection in the mirror.Demi was right. I looked like hell.My eyes were red and puffy and underlined by thick dark shadows and the rest of my skin was white as a ghost.But I didn't feel any better than I looked.

Demi helped me to clean and bandage my wounded hands, using a first aid kit that she apparently carried around wherever she went ("It makes sense when you're around reckless and occasionally childish wrestlers all the time") then she ordered room service for breakfast while I started packing.

I was relieved to see that Demi had taken all of the things I left at the Arena back to our hotel room and I wouldn't need to call my employer to tell him that I had lost thousands of dollars worth of equipment.

The drive to the airport was silent. Demi made sure to keep some kind of physical contact with me at all times as if she was concerned that I would evaporate into thin air if she stopped.We had met the guys before leaving the hotel, they were all glad to see me and didn't press to find out what had happened which I was very grateful for, I didn't think I had it in me to explain it again.

The closer we got to home, the more I was lost in my thoughts.Demi, of course, noticed immediately."What's going on in that little head of yours?" she reached out her hand to stroke a strand of hair that had fallen on my forehead behind my ear. The gesture was so soft and delicate that it almost made me cry all over again.

I just shook my head. She had already seen too much of the mess that was my life. I couldn't drag her further into this, it wasn't fair to her.But she was having none of the silence I gave her."Alexandria" she commanded in a calm but assured voice "tell me what's wrong."

For some reason, whenever she spoke to me in this benevolently dominant tone I had no choice but to oblige to whatever she was requesting."I'm scared of going home. I haven't had a clean streak that was longer than a couple of days there for weeks and I don't think I can do this anymore. I'm tired"

I felt her tense up next to me and when I looked over at her I was surprised to find her having an indignant and almost straight-up angry look on her face."You did not actually think I would let you go home by yourself, did you? There's a weird guy out there who is threatening you and the last time he got close to you you walked straight into danger. No way, you are coming with me or I am staying with you but I'm not leaving you alone" she exclaimed.

Maybe I should have been annoyed by the way she was patronizing me but all I could feel in this very moment was relief. And for the second time in less than 24 hours, I ended up crying in her arms.We got back to Orlando and decided that I would stay at Demi's apartment since she had her dogs there.

I just needed to make a stop at my place and pick up some things I would need.My first impulse was to ask Demi to wait in the car since my place was pretty much a dump but she refused to let me out of her sight. This turned out to be a good thing because when I unlocked the door and stepped into my living room I was met with a horrifying sight.

My entire apartment had been trashed. The furniture was tipped over, my dishes were smashed on the floor and my walls had been spray painted with unintelligible tags.And in the middle of this mayhem was Xav, sitting on my couch with a cup of coffee as if he belonged there.

"Oh good, you're finally home" he stopped in his tracks when he saw Demi standing behind me."And you brought a little visitor, how nice"Demi's nostrils were flaring and her eyes were pinched to tiny slits. Every single muscle in her body was engaged. I had never seen her this angry before. She didn't know for sure that this was Xav but the context clues seemed to be enough.

"You have ten seconds to get your ass out of here and never come back again. I am not someone you want to get in a fight with, understood?" she growled. This wasn't the cocky and brutal Rhea Ripley. This was a very furious Demi Bennett and somehow that was even scarier.
Xav held up his hands as if he was surrendering."I see it's not a good time right now. I will see myself out then. Until next time, Alexandria" the last part was clearly a threat.Once he was gone I broke down."He's gonna come back for me Demi""I'd like to see him try" She was still breathing heavily."Are you okay?" I asked. "No. I hate the way he acts like he owns you. I don't know why it makes me so angry, almost..." she trailed off."Almost what?"

"Almost jealous" she admitted, her voice a little lower than before.Admittedly, I was surprised. That wasn't what I had expected."So what are you going to do about that?" I was playing with fire and I knew it. But I had to know how this would play out.

"I'm torn between going after him and beating the shit out of him until he doesn't remember his own name and..."She stepped impossibly close to me, leaving me caught between her body and the wall."And pushing you against this wall and making sure that you know who you really belong to" she whispered in my ear, sending a rush through my system.

"And who would that be?" Even in this very strange situation, I couldn't help but push her buttons a little bit. I wanted to see how far she would go.She put her hands against the wall on either side of my head. "You've done this before" she determined."So have you" I contered."True" She stepped away slowly, and I followed, not wanting her to stop.

"Patience love" she chuckled "now is not the time. Let's go home"After I had (begrudgingly) packed some of the things that Xav hadn't destroyed I followed her to the car. As much as I was excited to stay with her, the closer we got to her apartment the more nervous I got. But Demi still had a hand on my leg the whole drive, making sure I didn't feel alone.